


Amber Over Aqua

by kawaiikanai



Series: Amber Over Aqua [1]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Angst, Fantasy, Fluff, Getting Together, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-06
Updated: 2015-04-06
Packaged: 2018-03-21 14:20:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3695543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kawaiikanai/pseuds/kawaiikanai
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan meets a new friend while on family vacation and learns that true friendship can survive time, differences, and other forces that threaten to keep them apart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I throw my bag onto the canopied bed and sigh, walking over to the big, windowed door. I open it and step out onto the balcony, the cool breeze relieving me from the heat and exotic birds chirping in the nearby palm trees. I never really appreciated the outdoors here the last few trips, instead spending my time indoors on the computer. There was no appeal to spending time outside, whether it be hiking through the tall forests with my family or lounging on this balcony with a book.

This year will be different. I plan on getting as much sun as I can so when I go back to England I can tell everyone about the great adventures I had in India and all the cool things I did. Maybe then my classmates will find me interesting. I don’t have that much in common with them as it is, so maybe if I at least pretend to be interesting they’ll let me hang out with them.

“Dan, are you done unpacking?” My mum shouts from down the hall.

“Almost.” I lie, shutting the door before opening up my duffle bag and dumping the contents onto my bed, quickly sorting through what I’d need for the rest of the day and leaving the rest to worry about later. I find my headphones in a side pocket and grab them before heading out the door, trying to remember which path leads to the beach as I start playing my music.

I only get through a few songs before I start to smell the salty air of the beach, the sound of seagulls squawking overhead in between songs. A low palm branch blocks my path and I move it aside, revealing an expansion of beach. Lots of people are gathered with their towels and umbrellas, the dull roar of chatter meeting my ears as I slip off my headphones. I’ll have to go down the beach to find a quieter spot to relax.

I weave between sunbathers and little kids castles until my feet meet the water, following the shore down the line towards some cliffs. A couple of volleyball players around my age eye me; I can almost sense them thinking ‘he doesn’t belong here, must be a foreigner’. I avert my gaze, ignoring them as I calm my breathing, focusing on walking and not tripping like an idiot or something.

The farther away I get from the main beach the quieter it gets and the more sounds from the nearby jungle carry through the air. Up ahead I spy a small cliff that overhangs the water, perfect for diving but seems to be abandoned at the moment. I reach it and stuff my headphones and phone in the big side pocket of my shorts before finding a place to climb up. The steep slant of the side makes me have to almost climb up on all fours before finally getting to the top and straightening up. The edge of the cliff is closer to the water than I thought. I’m able to take off my shoes and dangle my toes in the water, slightly warm from the noonday sun but still plenty cool.

I grab up my headphones again and lay back on the hard surface, picking my playlist of classical covers and closing my eyes. It’s nice to lose myself like this once in a while, mind drifting along with the music and feeling the heat from the sun’s rays on my skin. The breeze feels nice as well, not too strong and tussling my hair on my forehead. I could stay like this forever but after a little while I can tell that if I stay any longer it’ll be more than just a tan on my skin and I’ll have to spend the rest of my vacation in sunburnt hell.

I sit up, pulling my headphones down to hang around my neck. I go to grab my shoes but stop, seeing a small black shape in the water. Two eyes stare at me from under a mass of black hair. I’m frozen in place, half way reaching for my shoes. The person stares at me, only sticking out of the dark water from the nose up.

“Um, hey.” I say, giving a small wave.

The person quickly ducks under water and disappears. I stand up, looking around the water for a sign of movement, but seeing nothing. After a few moments the head pops back up, much farther away and I wonder how they got over there so fast. They stare at me again, head bobbing at the surface before diving under. I wait, but they don’t pop again, so I slip my shoes back on and leave.

~

The next day after breakfast I leave my headphones behind in exchange for my camera, setting out to the beach again. It hasn’t warmed up yet this morning so I pull a long sleeved shirt over my vest, shoes kicking up dirt along the trail. I don’t bother going to the water yet and having to deal with people, instead following the edge of the trees until it meets the cliff.

I climb up the rocks and sit down in the same place as yesterday, crossing my legs and turning on my camera. It takes a moment to figure out the zoom settings, but once I get it I direct it out to the water, trying to find any black spots. For the most part the water all looks the same, a deep blue compared to the clearer blue by the shore. It gets pretty deep over here, so I’d better be careful not to fall in. I let my camera fall to my lap and sigh, no signs of the person from yesterday. It was a longshot, but worth a try.

I look down at my lap and quickly jump back, almost dropping my camera over the side. A head ducks under the water right in front of me, quickly disappearing into the deep. “Wait, come back!” I call, scrambling onto my knees and leaning over the edge to try to see them. A few moments pass before the head comes back into view a yard or so away, again only the top half sticking out of the water, eyes wide. “I’m sorry if I scared you.”

They dare to come a little closer and I settle down on my stomach, resting my chin on my arms. “I’m Dan.” I tell them, trying to prove to them that I’m not as scary as they seem to think I am.

The person’s head comes out of the water a little more and I can tell now that it’s a boy, around the same age as me by his looks. His lips part as he comes to just under the cliff and an arm comes out of the water, hand reaching towards me. I shift and try to reach down to him but I move a little too fast and he flinches. “It’s ok.” I let my hand hang down and hold still, letting him move towards me again until his fingers barely graze my palm. His eyes widen even more, almost like he half expected me to not be real.

“Are y-you…” he mumbles, his voice deep in his throat, “…a human?”

“Yes? What else would I be?” I don’t think English is his native language, his accent odd and unfamiliar. Despite his pale complexion, he must be a local.

“I’m not sure.” He says, letting his arm fall back into the water. “I don’t come near the shore often enough to see people. My parents don’t like it.”

“Why?”

“They say I’ll get into trouble.”

“How? By swimming around and having fun?” I know what it’s like to have strict parents, but I can’t see the problem with hanging out at the beach.

“They say people like you will think I’m weird and hurt me.” He looks down at the water, sinking into it again.

What kind of parents would say that to their kid? Sure, other people my age think I’m weird and don’t like me, but that’s a whole other thing. “I don’t think you’re weird.” I smile, shrugging.

He looks back up at me, eyes almost sparkling from the reflection of the water on his face. “You don’t?”

“You seem alright to me.” I assure him and a smile finally crawls onto his face, making my chest tighten for some reason.

“I’ve never had someone say that to me before. Most of my community doesn’t like me.”

“I know how that feels.” I sigh, “My classmates and I don’t share a lot of likes so I don’t really talk to them.”

“Classmates?” He cocks his head.

“Yeah, the people I go to school with.”

“Oh, I didn’t know humans swam in groups.” He says.

“No, I mean school school. You know, the place where adults teach you stuff?”

“Oh, I don’t go to that school.” He shrugs.

Is he from a remote village or something? Or maybe he’s actually home taught. “I wish I didn’t have to go, it sucks there. I don’t learn anything I really need and I don’t like the people there.”

“I learn all the stuff I need from my parents and what the elder tells us. We learn how to hunt small fish and search for clams and mussels to eat, and how to get away from sharks and other predators.” He shudders at the thought.

“It sounds like you’re from a fishing village. I didn’t know there were any around here.” I thought it was mostly resorts and vacation houses in the areas.

“Well, my village is actually way out there.” He points out towards the ocean but I don’t see any islands in the distance.

“Wow, you must have swam a long way.” I marvel. “I wish I could swim that well.”

“I’ve swam my whole life, so I’m used to it.”

He must be one of those kids whose parents threw him into the water at a young age; not surprising if he is from a fishing village. “I wish I could swim that well. I’m terrible at it.”

“You can’t swim?” He looks like I’ve said the impossible. “How can you not swim?”

“I don’t know, I just can’t get my limbs to move the right way and I sink.”

His face falls. “I’m sorry.”

“What for?” I wonder.

“Swimming is what makes us free. It keeps us safely away from creatures that may harm us and lets us express ourselves. If I couldn’t swim, I don’t know what I’d do.”

I let out a giggle and he looks at me confused. “It’s not that bad. I can still walk around the beach and stuff, I just can’t go into deep water when I’m in the ocean or a pool.”

His face lightens again. “Oh, I forgot you can walk.” He laughs, the water rippling around him.

I laugh as well. “You are weird.” I tell him, “But in a good way.” I pause a moment, and almost smack myself in the forehead. “I’ve completely forgotten to ask your name.”

“It’s Philip.” He says.

“Can I call you Phil?”

“Sure!” He grins.

My phone goes off and Phil gets startled, head whipping around. I pull out my phone and see that it’s my mum texting me, wondering where I am and that it’s lunch time. “I have to get going for now, but can I come back and hang out later?”

“Please do!” He says.

I grunt as I stand up, having been lying down on the hard rock for too long. “Do you want to maybe hang out on the beach instead?”

He looks over to the shore, shaking his head. “I can’t be around that many people. Better to stay over here.”

“I understand.” There would probably be annoying people over there anyways, I don’t know why I suggested it. “I’ll see you later, then.” I wave goodbye and watch as he dunks underwater again, turning around and heading back to the house.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan meets a new friend while on family vacation and learns that true friendship can survive time, differences, and other forces that threaten to keep them apart.

Hanging out with Dan has really been the highlight of my week. My life, even. Every day I’ve met him in our usual spot, talking about anything and everything. He tells me so many things about the world on land, showing me different devices and telling me about his life back in the big city where he lives. People live in giant towers and take big machines to work and back every day. It sounds wonderful. I can only tell him about my knowledge of marine life, but he seems interested in it, even though I find it mundane.

“Football?” I ask, scratching my head.

“Yeah, I mean, I’m not that into it but it’s a really popular game. You kick a ball around and try to kick it into a net.” He explains, trying to show how big the net is with his arms but they’re clearly not long enough.

I shake my head, eyes shut tight. “I don’t think I’d like that game. We’re told to stay away from nets because we may get tangled in them.”

“What games do you play?” he wonders.

I place a hand on my chin. “Well, we race against dolphins a lot.”

“That’s so cool!”

“Really?” My eyes beam at him.

“Yeah, I know there are places you can go to swim with dolphins and stuff, but to just swim with them out in the open ocean must be amazing! And you actually race them? I wish I could swim that fast.” It is quite fun swimming alongside the dolphins and orcas. I’ve even won a few races.

Then an idea hits him. “I’ll be right back.” Dan leaves and I stay near the cliff as I see him run down the beach. When he comes back he has something big in his hands, blue and round, but wrinkly. He sits down on the cliff, catching his breath.

“What’s that?” I ask.

“This,” He gasps, still a little out of breath, “will let me come swim with you.”

I look at it with a smile, eager for him to finally come join me in the water, then what he’s about to do sinks in and my smile fades. “You’re going to come swim with me?”

“Yeah, it’ll be fun!” He tells me, “I just have to blow this up first. It may take a while.” He finds a hole sticking out of the blue thing and starts blowing into it and I watch intently as the circle begins to grow. It takes forever, but he finally gets it full of air, quickly closing the hole and standing up. “I don’t think I can jump from this cliff,” He says. Even though the distance from the top of the cliff is shorter than his own body, it’s still a jump into really deep water. I don’t blame him. “I’m going to go from the shore and make my way back over here, ok?”

I nod and he heads down the cliff. I take a moment to prepare myself. He’s going to come swim with me. I’ve been wanting to be at the same level as him for a while now, instead of always looking up at him; it makes the thought of or difference stand out even more in my mind. I have to be careful, though. I have to make sure he doesn’t go underwater or get to close to me. I’m terrified of what he’d think of me.

As I wait for him I dive under the water for a second, the dark water easily visible to me and letting me see the ocean floor. A crab skitters past as I rake the bottom with my hands, sifting through sand dollars and debris from the beach. I see a spike of black jutting out of the sand and I grab it, making sure it isn’t inhabited by anything before resurfacing. As I pop up, Dan shouts. “You scared me!”

“Haha, sorry.” I apologize, “I was diving for this.” I hold up a small shell, long and black, spiraling in on itself.

“That’s so cool!” I hand it to him and his eyes look over it like I’d found a gold doubloon. “Can I keep it?”

I nod. “It’s for you. It’s tradition to give gifts to others that you want to claim.”

“Claim?”

“Yes, I claim you as my friend.” I smile and again I feel my heart ready to burst. I hope my token seals our friendship like it’s supposed to. I’ve only known Dan for a short time and I already feel this strongly about him. 

“Thank you.” He grips the shell tightly then reaches to put it in a side part of him clothing bottoms. “I’ll try to find something to give to you as well.”

I giggle and grabs the side of the floating device, making Dan lean on the back of it so I can hold on properly. “I never thought I’d have a friend like you.” I admit, resting my chin on my arms.

He laughs, “Me either.”

I grin wider and grip my end of the blue thing tightly before I tug on it. I start to spin the thing around me, pulling Dan along with it and making him giggle uncontrollably. “W-wait! Too fast!” He laughs, having to close his eyes so he doesn’t get dizzy. I slow him down to a stop, and I feel his feet graze my bottom half, making me jump back. He opens his eyes and looks down at the water, eyes squinting. “I think my foot hit a fish or something.”

“Uh, yeah, you must have.” I agree. My heart settles, thankful he didn’t realize it was me he touched.

He brushes it aside and we continue to enjoy our time together. As we talk some more I teach him how to hold his hands a certain way and squirt water out of them. Once he starts to get the hang of it I challenge him to a water fight, our laughter turning to screams of joy. After he waves his hands in the air, conceding my defeat, I go back over to his blue thing, a donut he calls it, while we catch our breath.

“I think I’ll have to be heading back soon.” He tells me sadly.

“I wish we could hang out all day.” I say, meaning it wholeheartedly. I wish he never had to leave.

“Well,” He says, “you can come back with me and I can show you all the cool stuff I brought with me.”

I bite my lip, looking away from him. “I can’t.”

“Sure you can.” I assures me, reaching to touch my arm but I pull away. “Phil, your parents won’t know, ok? It’ll be fine.”

“I-I just can’t.” I repeat, “I’m sorry.” I want so badly to follow him, but I just can’t.

“Fine.” I snaps. He turns around and starts to make his way back to the shore.

“Dan…” I call, but he doesn’t look back. I watch as he steps onto the beach and disappears into the trees. I can’t express to him how much I want to go with him but can’t without revealing what I am. I know I’ll have to sooner or later, but every time I feel like I can the lessons drilled into my brain by my kind pop up into my mind and the fear that they taught me my whole life envelopes me in an icy chill. Dan seems so different than what everyone says humans are like, though. He isn’t some horrid monster that’s stolen me away or hurt me. He’s my best friend. I stop my kicking and let myself slowly sink to the bottom of the sea, holding myself and hoping I can make things up tomorrow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan meets a new friend while on family vacation and learns that true friendship can survive time, differences, and other forces that threaten to keep them apart.

At dinner I join my family at a local restaurant, trying my best to chat and eat but my mind and stomach have other plans. My mum notices but doesn’t say anything until we get home. “Honey, you’ve been quiet all night. Everything alright?”

“Yeah, I’m ok.” I shrug, sitting at the dining table and using my phone to make it look like I’m busy.

She frowns and is about to say something then stops, in the middle of pulling off her earrings. “Oh, darn it.”

“What?”

She pulls the earring away from her ear and looks at it, the chain connecting the stained wood circle to the hook broken. She sighs, “Oh, well.” She pulls off the other earring and leaves them on the table. “I’ll have to fix it when were back home.”

I take her moment of distraction to slip off to my room, spending the rest of the night on my DS. After a while even Pokemon can’t distract me from my thoughts and I give up, setting it down to charge and turning in for the night early.

~

I roll over and fumble for my phone, the bright screen hurting my eyes and telling me that it’s three AM. I sit up, rubbing my eyes and stretching. Despite the hour I can’t sleep, my dreams making me toss and turn. I’d kept trying to get Phil to come to the house but he refused, saying there were monsters in it. I assured him that there weren’t any monsters in the house but he wouldn’t listen, instead floating further and further away from me. I tried swimming out to him but I didn’t have my donut so I was struggling and I soon felt something tugging on my leg. The last thing I saw before waking was Phil crying as I sank.

I look over to the table, the shell he gave me still sitting there, a 3D shadow against the white paint. I shouldn’t have gotten so mad at him like that. If he’s too scared to come to the house, then we’ll just have to stay where he’s comfortable. I need to make amends before I leave tomorrow, our week of vacation coming to a close.

I get up and grab the shell, creeping into the living room and flicking on the light. Over by the other door to the deck are Dad’s fishing rods and tackle box. I open up the box and pull out the tray to find a reel of fishing wire underneath, grabbing it and taking it to the kitchen.

“Dan, what are you doing up?”

I jump and see mum in the hallway, leaning against the wall and eyes half lidded. “Um, nothing.”

“It looks like something to me. What’ve you got there?” She comes into the kitchen and points to my shell. I hold it up to her, turning it slightly. “That’s pretty. Did you find that today at the beach?”

“Um, no my friend gave me it.” I tell her. I’ve already told her about the friend I made, her obviously wondering where I was running off to every day.

“Ah, I see what you’re doing.” She takes the reel of wire from me and grabs the scissors. “I used to do this with flowers when I was a little younger than you.” She unreels the wire and holds it up to my neck, holding still as she estimates how much to cut off. She gives the line a snip and threads the end through the hole in the shell. “Now turn around.” I do so and I can feel her fingers on my neck, tying the string tightly.

Once she lets go I look down at the shell, just visible under my chin. “Thanks.”

“No problem.” She says, “It suits you.”

I look up at her, “I want to give my friend something, too, but I don’t have anything.”

She thinks for a moment then turns towards the living room, coming back with her broken earring. “How about this?” She cuts off another line of wire and sticks it through the gold loop where the hook used to connect.

“Are you sure?” I ask after she sets the crafted necklace in my hand.

“I’m sure.” She smiles, “I don’t know what’s been going on, but you look much happier than you have all night.”

I clasp the wooden ring in my palm, “I just want to make sure I can make things right before we leave.”

She gives me a quick hug, telling me that she’s sure I can before heading back to bed. I wait a little while before I head out, knowing that she wouldn’t want me out this late but needing to do this now. I don’t know how much time I’ll have tomorrow before we have to pack and get ready to go.

I go to the beach, eerily quiet except for the crashing waves. I get to the cliff and scramble up it, cold wind picking up and almost lending a hand as I climb. I make it to the top and go to the edge, standing there and debating what to do. I don’t know what made me think Phil would be out here in the middle of the night. He’s at home in his bed sleeping while I’m standing out in the cold in nothing but pyjamas. How stupid am I? Should I maybe leave the necklace somewhere he’ll find it tomorrow? I could try swimming out to the edge of the cliff and tying it to a rock.

Another gust of wind blows at my back and I brace myself, planting my foot forward. It speeds up and my foot moves forward again, only it doesn’t meet rock. I wave my arms backwards but it’s too late and I’m falling head first into the water, hitting it hard and gulping down saltiness. I frantically try to figure out which way is up and I break the surface, coughing and sputtering as waves crash into my face. The waves push me towards the cliff and I hastily grab onto any finger hold I can find in the dark. The sea doesn’t let up, pressing me against the rocks and making me scrape my side on the sharpness of it.

I try feeling for more edges but find none prominent enough for me to grab on to. I can’t swim without help; what am I going to do? How am I going to get back home? Another big wave hits me and I feel my head bounce into the cliff, instinctively pressing a hand to where it hurts. My other hand slips off the rocks and before I can grab on again the receding water pulls me away from the cliff, dragging me away from the only thing keeping me above the surface. I slowly descend into darkness, the necklace still wrapped around my hand as my body is tossed around like a rag doll.

I feel something touch my face and soon my lips, pushing sweet air into my lungs and I grab at it in desperation. It pulls away and I feel the same touch under my arms, dragging me against the currant. I try to hold the little bit of air it gave me in but I’m soon struggling again, thrashing about until it finds my mouth again and my burning chest is eased again by a fraction.

It’s not long after that my head breaks the surface and I can feel solidity under me, cold stone feeling like heaven as my coughs and gasps echo around me. I open my eyes to see that I’m in a cave, lying on my back as only my torso sticks out of the water. I check my hand and see that by a miracle the necklace is still there. Then I wonder how I can even see my own hand, in the middle of a dark cave at night. I sit up and for a moment I think I may actually be outside under the stars, then I realize that the stars are moving. I weakly stand up and move to the wall, tiny glow worms crawling all over it.

I hear a splash and I look towards the entrance, a figure in the water. I squint my eyes against the dim light, “Phil?”

He comes a little closer but stays plenty away from me, silent and waiting.

I step back into the water and he moves even further away so I stop. “Phil…” I look at the necklace in my hand before clasping my hand over my mouth, fingers trembling and face heating. Phil just saved me, and… “Phil, I came to see you.”

I see Phil nod but still doesn’t move.

“I’m sorry for earlier. I shouldn’t have gotten mad at you.” I tell him, “If you don’t want to come to my house it’s fine, I don’t care.” I dare to take a step closer and he holds his place, listening. “I came to apologize. I… I still want to be friends.”

Phil’s eyes cast down before mouth coming up out of the water so he can talk. “I do, too.”

I unwrap the wire from my hand and hold out the necklace so he can see it. “I brought you a gift, too.” I tell him, fingers touching my own necklace. “I needed to bring it to you before I leave tomorrow.”

An audible gasp comes from his mouth. “You’re leaving?”

“I was only here on vacation. We’re going back home tomorrow and won’t be back until next year.” I explain. I should have told him sooner but I was so wrapped up in just spending time with him that I forgot. Now it’s too late to prepare.

“I thought…” I can hear the shaking in his voice, “I thought you would be my friend forever.”

“I will!” I almost shout, “I swear, we’ll be friends forever, I just can’t stay here forever. I can come back every year and see you but for now…” For now I’ll have to leave you.

Phil starts to actually cry, his sobs emphasized by the cave and I start to make my way towards him, wanting hold him. “Stay back.” He shouts, and I stop, only in the water up to my waist. “Please, j-just stop.”

“Phil, I’m sorry.” I say again, “I’ll do anything you want, just please forgive me for everything.”

“I do.” He sniffs.

“Then what’s wrong?” I wade a little deeper, stopping once the water meets my shoulders. I don’t dare go under any more after what just happened. “We’re friends, you can tell me.”

He hiccups, shaking his head. “I c-could be around you in the darker water, but…” He rubs his eye with the back of his hand. “If you see me in the shallows you won’t want to be my friend anymore.”

What’s he talking about? “Of course I’ll be your friend.” I shout to him, “I’ll always be your friend, no matter how far away we are, how long it will be until we see each other again, or for whatever silly reason you’re thinking of.” I place my hand over my heart, catching his eyes as he looks at me. “I swear to you.”

Phil gazes at me for a moment, then slowly moves closer. I stand there, arms opening and ready to embrace him as soon as he comes close enough. That’s when I notice something odd. As he comes into the thinner water I see that this legs aren’t moving the way they should. I toss it away as a trick of the water but then I see that at the end of his feet is a giant shape; a fin. I let my arms fall and float in the water as his bottom half becomes clearer, his normal looking body leading into a fish-like tail. I never really saw him from the neck down, only letting his head come above the surface. I never thought of it because that’s how everyone is when they float. He stops in front of me and I get a good look at him, noticing lines on his neck that open like flaps as water passes over them. His tail, longer than my legs, looks like a puddle of oil you’d see on the street, pitch black but as he moves you can see a plethora of colors. His fin is long and frayed, like a tattered fan, and as black as the rest.

“Phil, you-“ I shake my head, making my brain register what my eyes are seeing. “You’re a merman?”

He simply nods, holding himself as his tail flips back and forth. I try to say something else but I’m in too much shock and instead grab him, pulling him to me and squeezing him tightly. He stiffens, surprised obviously, and then settles in my arms, holding me back. We stay like that for probably too long, but neither of us say anything. I finally let go of him, holding his shoulders. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“I was scared.” He admits, “I’ve always heard stories of humans attacking merpeople or trying to capture them. That’s why we’re always warned of your kind.”

“I’d never hurt you!” I laugh, looking down at his tail again. “That is so cool!”

“You think it’s cool?” He sounds in disbelief.

“Of course! Your tail is such a cool color, it matches your hair.” I praise, “It reminds me of the abalone shells I saw in a gift shop the other day.”

Phil opens his mouth again but the only thing that comes out is another sob and I quickly hold him again, his shoulders shaking. “My whole life I’ve been teased because everyone else has such normal colored tails like red or purple but mine it black, the color of illness and death. No one’s ever said they liked it until you. You’ve said nicer things to me this past week than my own people have ever said to me.”

“Well, I’ve always been different than my own people, too.” I mumble into his neck, “Maybe it’s just taken an outside look to see just how wonderful you are, I mean, you saved my life.” I look at him, his eyes have finally stopped welling over. “I owe you so much.”

“No, of course I had to save you.” He says, “I was wandering around, unable to sleep, when I thought I’d head this way and I saw you on the horizon on the cliff. When you fell in I swam as fast as I could to help you.”

“And you did.” I touch his face and he smiles, touching my hand. “Thank you.”

I let go of him. “Oh, I forgot.” I hold up the necklace, “I haven’t given you this yet.”

He stares at it, eyes wide like a child in a sweet shop. “It’s perfect!” he exclaims, “It matches your hair and eyes!”

I feel my heart skip again and I tell him to turn around, wrapping the wire around his neck and carefully double tying it so it won’t come off. He turns back around and holds up the wooden circle, mouth hanging open and a look of utter glee on his face. “I will treasure this gift always.”

I laugh, scratching the back of my head. “It’s not that valuable or anything. It’s no big deal.”

“It’s absolutely valuable to me!” He says, “It’s from you.”

I gulp, just agreeing and looking away. “I… I don’t want to go, but I need to get back before my parents realize I’m gone.”

Phil lets go of the necklace and embraces me, this time my arms going around his waist, some of his scales touching my arm. It’s an odd texture, but I’m not all that bothered about it. I don’t think the fact has completely clicked with me yet, but I guess that’s good for now.

“I promise, I’ll be waiting for you in this very cave when you come back a year from now.” He whispers in my ear.

“And I promise to meet you here.” I sadly break our embrace. “And I’ll come with water guns so I have a proper chance against you in a water fight.”

“I don’t know what that is,” he laughs, “but I look forward to finding out.”

We start to exit the cave, me holding onto Phil as he swims for both of us. Once we make it to the mouth I see that the cave is just a little ways on the opposite side of the cliff from the beach. We go around the cliff and up towards the shore, stopping once I can stand on my own. “I guess this is goodbye for now.” I frown.

“For now.” He says, before ducking under, flipping around and swimming away. I suppose no goodbye is best as I try to hold in my own tears.

I turn towards the shore and start to truck through the sand but stop, hearing a splash behind me. I look back to see Phil has come back, reaching up to me. I lean forward and he grabs my face, pulling me down more until I’m on my knees. His lips meet my cheek and my mind goes absolutely blank. He then pulls away, smiling that stupid smile that makes my chest flutter. “See you.” He says, once again diving into the water and swimming away, this time for sure.

I stay there a moment, one hand on my cheek and the other on my necklace, turning the shell in my fingers.

~

“Dan, are you all packed?” Dad shouts at me and I tell him I am as I struggle to zip my bag up. Once fully closed I grab it and throw it into the rental car outside, everyone else making their last rounds of the house to make sure we haven’t forgotten anything. Once we’re set we take off, needing to catch an early flight back so we’re home before dark.

I stare out the window as we go down the palm tree lined road, once again headphones on and oblivious to the conversation in the car between my parents and my brother. We just pass a lie of houses and the view opens up to the ocean. The morning sun is peaking over the water, casting golden rays over the royal blue, the two hues of color mixing in the middle. I never thought I’d have the adventure I did on this vacation, but I’m glad I did. Once I’m home it’ll only be a matter of time before I’m counting down the days until I can come back here, wanting to lie down in the starry-like cave next to my new companion.


End file.
